Unicef's menstrual hygiene ambassador Shamima Muslim Alhassan told BBC Pidgin that the directive, which applies to part of the River Ofin, violated girls' right to education.

"It seems the gods are really powerful aren't they?" she said.

"Sometimes I think that we need to ask for some form of accountability from these gods who continue to bar a lot of things from happening, to account for how they have used the tremendous power that we have given them."

Central Regional Minister Kwamena Duncan has given indications he will coordinate with the Ashanti regional minister to find a solution, BBC Pidgin reports.

The River Ofin serves as a boundary between the Ashanti and Central Region.